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Facilitate an Activity

You are going to be a facilitator. It's exciting and a little bit intimidating. This page should contain all the basic information you need to know. If you have more questions, please email them to epec@hampshire.edu. No question is too silly.

As a facilitator, your job is to make sure the activity actually happens. You are not necessarily responsible for the actual teaching; you're the administrator. EPEC is here to help you with that task.

Here are some things to consider:

Writing the activity description

EPEC is not here to put ideas in your head. Your ideas are what count. What do you want to achieve with your EPEC activity? Will you need a syllabus? How will your activity run? Does it culminate in a final art project or piece of written work? Brainstorm!

Places and Times

Keep in mind that spaces on campus are limited, especially during Jan term. Think: What will your activity require in the way of space? Try and come up with a few options, so that we can help you reserve a good spot. Can the belly dancing class you want to facilitate meet in the middle of a Greenwich donut? Can the film discussion group you want to lead make use of the television in the Merrill living room? Be creative!

How about meeting times? Will you meet twice or twice a week all semester? Do you want to have a specific time that your activity will meet, or would you like to have an initial meeting with interested parties to see what fits best into everyone's schedule? Will there be any special events?

Get people interested

Talk to your friends, put up posters, send out intranet announcements. One of EPEC's goals is to compile a print catalog of Jan term EPEC activities to distribute to the student population. If you are facilitating an EPEC activity over Jan term and would like your activity to be included in the catalog, try and get your application form in by early November. We will also have listings online as EPEC activity proposals arrive.

Seeing it through

You are EPEC's contact person for the activity. If we have anything important to tell your group regarding space reservation, funding, or anything else, you are the person we'll look for. Keep records of participants, including contact information. Let participants know important information, like schedule changes or anything else. Keep track of your projects and set deadlines. Let EPEC know how those things are going. If you have been approved for funding, keep track of expenses that may qualify you for reimbursement, and keep receipts. Remember, you need to tell EPEC that you plan to spend money before the activity begins, so we can approach FiCom on your behalf. Some students may be interested in trying to incorporate an EPEC activity into their Div II or III. Your EPEC activity may be sponsored as an independent study by a professor. Write evaluations for those who want them. Make copies for EPEC, the student, and yourself.

Application Process

The EPEC activity application process is really quite simple. You can download a word document of the EPEC activity application form or pick up a hard copy on our board outside the post office, or at campus leadership and activities (CLA). It's pretty straightforward, and there's a lot of flexibility. Come up with an idea, plan it out, write it down, bring it to the CLA office during EPEC office hours, or drop it off in the EPEC mailbox at the CLA office or email it to epec@hampshire.edu.

Check out the Current Offerings to see how we format our activity listings. It should help you figure out how to answer questions.

Academic and Divisional Credit

EPEC activities are not currently registered through central records, and will not appear on your transcript. Also, unfortunately EPEC activities do not count towards Division I distribution requirements except under special circumstances.

As with most activities for Division II and Division III students, what goes in your portfolio is between you and your committee. As many of us know it can be incredibly difficult to secure an independent study with a faculty necessary for your concentration. EPEC is attempting to give credibility to studies not directly sponsored by a professor. One faculty member could sponsor an EPEC activity, treating it as a group "independent" study, helping out a large number of students at once. Facilitators are responsible for writing evaluations for their participants if the participants ask.

Division III students may choose to facilitate an EPEC course as one of their advanced educational activities as long as it is planned with and evaluated by a Hampshire faculty member. The other advanced educational activity must be an advanced-level course or TA.

For facilitators, if you need a community service or academic evaluation for facilitating an activity, submit a portfolio of activity materials and participant feedback to EPEC's student coordinator at least one week before you need the evaluation completed.

Funding

EPEC has some funding this semester. Save receipts to submit so that you can get reimbursed. To ensure that EPEC has funding for your activity submit your application before the deadline with a detailed list of the funding you require.

Questions?

If your questions aren't answered on this page or on the FAQ page, please contact the student EPEC coordinator at epec@hampshire.edu, or visit during office hours in CLA.